A black nurse has filed suit after she says the hospital she works for honored a request by a white father to allow only white nurses to manage the care of his newborn. Nurse Tonya Battle says the racial note indicating the father’s wishes was posted in the nursery. A note which read “No African Americans to take care of baby” was attached the assignment clipboard.

Battle works in the neonatal intensive care unit of a Michigan hospital, and says she was reassigned after the white dad made his wishes known. The lawsuit maintains that Battles’ 14th Amendment rights were violated by the Flint hospital.

Although the no African American nurses sign was ultimately removed, Battle claims that she and other African American staffers were prevented from caring for the child for about a month. Statements in the lawsuit maintain that the baby’s dad rolled up his sleeve and revealed a tattoo. The dad’s tattoo alleged appeared to be a “swastika of some kind.”

Battle’s attorney says that her client’s problem is that her employer upheld the father’s bias.

“I don’t doubt that people have made requests like this in the past. You’re not going to control the prejudices and biases of people. That’s not my client’s issue. The problem she has is that her employer of 25 years granted the request.”

22 comments

How very unfortunate that such ignorance and racism still lives and breathes in
America. I wonder if this child’s life had been on the line and the only person who could have saved him or her was Black, the father would have let the child die rather than have an African American keep his son or daughter alive. Please sue the hospital with and anyone connected to the posting with my blessing and support as it rings true still that the only thing many whites and white institutions in this country understand or care about is when you hit them in the pocketbook.

I am a white RN with over 30 years of experience.
Where I work currently, I saw a note where a
patient only wanted black nurses to take care of
her. People are people no matter the color…we are all ONE race…the Human race. We must all work hard to fight our own prejudices and reach out to each other and work for the common good of the Human race. If we meet hate, bigotry and prejudice with the same amount of hate, bigotry and prejudice than we are no better than the people who act in that way. Ghandi and Dr. King were right….meet hate with love!! I agree with Lola Jenkins!

The amount of vitriol being directed at the baby is astounding. What the f*** did the baby do, aside from have the misfortune to be born to a bigoted asshole of a father?

Are the people here who are saying the hospital should have made them leave really trying to say that the baby – barely able to see past the end of its own nose, let alone understand its father’s despicable views – should have been turned away from medical help it required just because the father is a racist?

Given such discrimination should not be allowed at any hospital, where exactly are those saying they should have been made to leave this hospital expecting the sick baby to be treated?

I worked in the ICU for 8 years as an RN. I was also confronted with covert and overt “Racism”. She did the right thing to file the suit against her employer, they violated her civil rights! I refuse to believe that they were unaware, and I’m sure this was not their first offense. The Only thing they understand IS:
PAYING PENALTIES And FINES!!!

If the father had demanded that no Jewish doctor care for his baby I guarantee the hospital would have told his bigoted azz to hit the road. I hope she sues the hospital for millions! If the white father feels that way that’s his problem I don’t care. But the hospital should have told him to take his N. a. z. i. baby somewhere else for care.

That childrens hospital was not and is not just for specific crackers. They should have been told to go elsewhere, yet the administation showed their racism by going along with some white couple. As if this black nurse of 25years has a job there at the good graces of particular white people. Sue on sister and put these parents in the suit along with the hospital and anybody that okayed the decision. Look further and I am sure that they requested all white delivery room personel too.

That childrens hospital was not and is not just for specific crackers. They should have been told to go elsewhere, yet the administation showed their racism by going along with some white couple. As if this black nurse of 25years has a job there at the good graces of particular white people. Sue on sister and put these parents in the suit along with the hospital and anybody that okayed the decision. Look further and I am sure that they requested all white delivery room personel too.

I don,t see why the nurse would be upset about being refused to look after some nazi pricks white baby.Screw him and just carry on doing your job.By him not letting her look after his baby he just lightened her work load.Anyways i thought nazis were born in germany not the states.

When it comes to hatred, nothing anyone does surprises me. The main ones that hate others, especially those who don’t look like them are the first ones in the church on Sunday, praising the GOD who made us all.

This kind of stuff happens a lot,my Daughter does Blood work at a hospital in California,she runs into this a lot, she is very well train in her craft,she tells me when it happens to her,I ask her what stand do you take,she laugh and say,at first I got upset and then I remember what you told me,Your job is Saving Lives,chances are they will get someone else who may not be as good at their Craft as you are,by the way there were times they had to call her back in because that other person could not find the Baby’s vein to draw the Blood.

Jamie Love you and all who think like you should just kill yourselves. It is so ignorant for you (no color whites) believes you all are superior even to God himself. If that bastard did not want a nurse of color to care for his (it) then (they) should have taken (it) to the kkk. I only wish I could run into a racist bastard in any situation!!! African American know that we are the chosen ones. Read your BiBle!!! God has a beautiful place for us and there WILL NOT be a race of such that hate us because of the color of our skin. They are nothing and they know it!!!!

The nurse should sue for BIG bucks. The racist father of the baby obviously does not know the history of this country. If his family was born in the U.S., then he probably has some slavemaster ancestors whose children were raised on the breast milk of black slave women. Can’t get much dumber than this. Racism comes from ignorance.

I don’t see a problem with his request, but the hospital administration should have informed him that the hospital was not a private facility and if he was not willing to pay for private nursing care then the qualified nurses on staff would be providing care for the infant, If people want to be prejudice then they have to be aware that they cannot subject the public to there choices this the UNITED STATES OF AMERICA which means that that you can not expect your prejudice thoughts to be honored in a public setting.

I don’t see a problem with his request, but the hospital administration should have informed him that the hospital was not a private facility and if he was not willing to pay for private nursing care then the qualified nurses on staff would be providing care for the infant, If people want to be prejudice then they have to be aware that they cannot subject the public to there choices this the UNITED STATES OF AMERICA which means that that you can not expect your prejudice thoughts to be honored in a public setting.

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